User blog:PokeLaki21/Laki Discusses: Gender Conventions in the Pokecrew
Hello all, I'd like to think of this as my first "Discussion" series in the Pokecrew, where certain things are examined. These are my interpretations, so they're not 100% right. Anyhow, today I will be discussing gender and gender conventions in the crew, espeically in regards to females. It will be broken down into sections. Feminism in the Order of Light? The Order of light is very known in the Crew, primarily due to its rather large cast and diverse situations. Not only this, but quite a large body of the cast is female. The Order seems to turn gender conventions on its head with its portrayals of females, most of them being portrayed as just as strong and physically capable as the men. Not only this, but even conventions in romance are swapped. More often than not we see Teddy, the man, being rescued by Dodeca, the woman. The powerful role of the protector is being applied to the female in this circumstance, whereas most of the time it's the opposite. Vanessa herself, in a deeper examination could very well be interpreted as a feminist character. A go-getting woman who isn't afraid to use her sexuality to get what she wants, she's very set on achieving her goals. However, the basis of her organization is still rather risque, and as more villainesses are shown as seductive, it may begin to reflect certain negative stereotypes on promiscuity. Female PokeOCs There are a few instances of gender conventions being played with with the Pokemon characters of the timeline, though they are fewer and further between. The Search for K showcased a very strong female cast in its portrayal of Sheebop, Ayane and Paige to name a few. Sheebop trains under Ayane in order to become strong enough to overcome adversity. However, in spite of this, there still are a few archetypes that exit. Once again on Sheebop, in most of her early characterization she was known primarily for her "tsundere" nature, almost as if she's just defined exclusively based on her emotions towards a male character. She has grown out of this slightly, now being portrayed as the only sane one amongst a cast of oddballs. Chiko, on one hand, is a very dependable aly and invaluable member of the team in PRPS. However, her cooking abilities and doting towards Aqua bring her dangerously close to a "housewife" archetype. Shiruru is an interesting case in her spin off comic, being that her main goal is just winning the approval of Whallop, though it's played comedically. Keeping this issue in mind, episodes are planned in which it's not her only goal JUST to cater Whallop, with bizarre situations between herself, Char and Emolga being thrown in. Being that romance and comedy are the primary focuses in these branches, it's a bit easier to find conventions, however, the characters themselves are often exaggerated so it's mostly played for laughs. Plus, females on the cast are just as vulnerable to slapstick and physical comedy. So yeah, there ends my random discussion. I may do more on different topics. Category:Blog posts